More parameters added to audit of swine flu deaths in Rajasthan

Some more parameters are being added to conduct audit of the deaths caused due to swine flu in Rajasthan. According to an official, now the family members of the patients will be asked a few questions in order to find out the gaps and fix them.

Health minister Raghu Sharma in January had ordered an audit of each patient who died of swine flu in the state. The audit of 79 deaths in January revealed that more than 70% of the deceased were suffering from other chronic diseases related to heart, kidney, chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD), asthma, diabetes among others, while others were brought to hospital at the last stage, when the infection had reached the lungs.

Sharma said that earlier, death audit was being conducted at the hospitals attached to medical colleges, but now all chief medical and health officers will audit the deaths in their district to find the reasons and detailed investigation will be carried out to find out the gaps.

Elaborating further, additional director (rural health) Dr Ravi Prakash Sharma said, “Now in any death related to swine flu, the family members will be enquired on the swine flu symptoms noticed in patient, if they visited the nearby health facility, if any team came to their home for screening, whether tamiflu was given to the patient on time, how much time did it take to reach hospital from home and would also enquire about the patient’s social economic status to find out whether he was connected to the health system.”

It is to be mentioned that from January 1 to February 16, total 3,427 people were found swine flu positive and 127 deaths have taken place. In this month itself, from February 1 to 16, total 1,304 people have been tested swine flu positive and 48 have died.

The minister said the health department is making wide efforts to prevent swine flu.

Door-to-door screening is being done in the entire state on the experts’ advice of early detection and early treatment to avoid this disease from getting serious, he added.

The minister also directed the health personnel to be serious in the work of door-to-door screening and if any carelessness was found in this campaign then strict action would be taken against the personnel concerned.

First Published: Feb 18, 2019 14:56 IST